Abstract Background: Consumption of healthy diets that contribute with adequate amounts of fat and fatty acids is needed for children. Among Guatemalan children, there is little information about fat intakes. Therefore, the present study sought to assess intakes of dietary fats and examine food sources of those fats in Guatemalan children. Methods: The study subjects consisted of a convenience sample of 449 third- and fourth-grade schoolchildren (8-10 y), attending public or private schools in Quetzaltenango City, Guatemala. Dietary data was obtained by means of a single pictorial 24-h record. Results: The percentages of total energy (%E) from total fat, saturated fat (SFA) and monounsaturated fat (MUFA) reached 29%E for total fat and 10%E for each SFA and MUFA, without gender differences. %E from fats in high vs. lowsocio economic status (SES) children were significantly higher for boys, but not for girls, for total fat (p = 0.002) and SFA (p < 0.001). Large proportions of the children had low levels of intakes of some fatty acids (FA), particularly for n-3 FA, with >97% of all groups consuming less than 1%E from this fats. Fried eggs, sweet rolls, whole milk and cheese were main sources of total fat and, SFA. Whole milk and sweet bread were important sources of n-3 FA for high- and low-SES boys and girls, respectively. Fried plantain was the main source of n-3 FA for girls in the high-SES group. Fried fish, seafood soup, and shrimp, consumed only by boys in low amounts, were sources of eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) acids, which may explain the low intakes of these nutrients. Conclusions: α-linolenic acid, EPA and DHA were the most limiting fatty acids in diets of Guatemalan schoolchildren, which could be partially explained by the low consumption of sources of these nutrients, particularly fish and seafood (for EPA and DHA). This population will benefit from a higher consumption of culturally acceptable foods that are rich in these limiting nutrients. Background As many developing countries in the world are transitioning from high-carbohydrates diets to diets higher in fat, increases in prevalence rates of chronic conditions such as obesity diabetes and cardiovascular diseases are occur* Correspondence: [email protected] 3

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ring. Dietary consumption of diets high in fats and in some fatty acids during childhood can have long-term health consequences. It is important for children to consume adequate amounts and types of fats, however, as they are essential components of healthy diets, insofar as linoleic (LA, 18:2n-6) and α-linolenic (ALA, 18:3n-3) acids are indispensable for functions in human anatomy and metabolism [1,2]. Thereafter, fat reserves in adipose tissues play a role in storage of lipid-soluble nutrients and

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thermal insulation of the body, whereas its oxidation yields metabolic energy along with carbohydrate and protein. Data on fat intakes among children from industrialized countries reveal intakes higher than the recommended levels, which are targeted to contribute between 20 to 35% of total energy with no more than 10% of energy from saturated fats [3]. German school age children, 6-11 y, obtained 41% of their total energy from fats, and 20% of energy from saturated fats[4]. Studies with children from Italy [5], France [6] and the United States [7,8] also documented higher than recommended total and saturated fat intakes. Intakes of dietary fats among people from traditional societies exhibit different patterns, according to the demands of their environments. For example, Kuhnlein et al (2008) reported that traditional diets of Canadian adults from three indigenous groups (Inuits, Dene/Me'tis and Yukon First Nations), when compared to their recommendations for adequate intakes, are sufficient in n-3 PUFA but low in n-6 ALA [9]. In other settings, populations are in the midst of a nutritional transition [10], which is characterized by changes in the eating patterns. In Northern Mexico, children between 8-12 years of age of low socioeconomic status (SES) consumed diets high in total and saturated fats, and in cholesterol [11]. Although it is presumed that patterns of fat consumption are changing among Guatemalan children, there is little information to support this conjecture or to assess the direction of associations between fat intake and risk for chronic diseases risk. However, over the years, and with Guatemalan adults, results from dietary surveys have variously documented relatively low fat contributions to total energy on the order of 15% [12], 20% [13], or 27% [13,14]. There is also evidence that during the past 20 years, the Guatemalan population increased its consumption of dietary fats [15]. Evidence for the progression of nutrition transition has recently come from a combined anthropometric and dietary survey of 3rd and 4th grade schoolchildren in a provincial capital, Quetzaltenango City, Guatemala [1618]. We present here the findings related to the selection and consumption of different food and beverages as major and minor sources of the fat intake of this population sample. We aimed at determining dietary intakes of fatty acids (FA) and the adequacy of those intakes, as compared to the World Health Organization (WHO) Dietary Goals [19]. We also sought to identify the main food sources of total fat and FA among our study sample.

Methods Study population

Our study used data previously obtained as part of a cross-sectional study designed to assess nutritional status

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and dietary intakes of fruit and vegetable in a sample of 583 children, from 3rd and 4th grades in five public and seven private schools in the city of Quetzaltenango, in the western highlands of Guatemala. Detailed information about the original study had been documented elsewhere [16-18,20,21]. For the study reported here, we identified a sample of 449 children (48% boys, between 8-10 years of age) with complete dietary information. Using type of school, public or private, we classified children attending public schools as of low socio-economic status (LSES, n = 219) and those attending private schools as of high socioeconomic status (HSES, n = 230), similarly to criteria applied in previous publications based in this study [16-18,20,21]. The original survey was approved by the Human Subjects Committee of the Center for Studies of Sensory Impairment, Aging and Metabolism (CeSSIAM) and authorized by local education authorities. Informed assent from the children and informed consent from their parents were obtained. For this study, we also obtained approval from the Tufts Medical Center/Tufts University Investigation Review Board. Dietary data processing and analysis

Dietary data, collected during a 6 wk period between May and June 2005, was obtained with a single pictorial 24-hr recall complemented by a follow-on interview with a trained nutritionist, following a methodology developed and tested with schoolchildren attending public and private schools in Guatemala City [16-18,20,21]. Such methodology included the use of a 5-page booklet designed as the data collection instrument. Once informed consent from the parents was obtained, assenting children were asked to take a booklet home and to draw all foods and beverages consumed prospectively for a period of 24 h., both at home and at school. The instructions, explained by a research nutritionist, and contained in the booklet asked for details of all consumed items, including snacks, candies, brands and other similar characteristics. Once the recording time was completed, the research nutritionist interviewed the children. Completeness of the data was reviewed and portion sizes were estimated. In regards to foods eaten at schools, it is important to note here that no school lunch was provided by the participating schools and children brought their snacks from home or bought them at the school cafeterias. Schools in the target area end their school day at 1:30 pm and students return home for lunch. Dietary data was processed with an initial review and codification of all food and beverage items. A total of 247 distinct foods and beverages were reported by the children. For the nutrient analysis of this data, we constructed a nutrient database, with complete data on fatty

acids, based on the USDA food composition database, version 14[22], as no other nutrient database with information about fatty acid composition of foods was available in Guatemala. Our database included dietary lipids, cholesterol and principal fat classes, including saturated (SFA), monounsaturated (MUFA), polyunsaturated (PUFA), and individual fatty acids. Recipes for mixed dishes were created using information from the Latin American food composition tables from the Institute of Nutrition for Central America and Panama (INCAP), [23,24]. And we used proxy items from the USDA database to create equivalencies in nutrient content for local foods (mainly green leaves) without representation in the INCAP food composition tables. Statistical Analysis

We analyzed the study data with the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, SPSS for Windows, release 16.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, Illinois). Preliminary analysis was firstly carried out to check normality of the data. We tested general linear models (GLMs) to assess levels of intakes of fats and fatty acids in children stratified by gender and SES, with adjustments for dietary energy (when appropriate) and for school grade. For the assessment of adequacy of the intake of total fats (TF) and fatty acids, we compared intakes from the study sample of school age children with the dietary goals recommended by WHO [19]. Some of these dietary goals include setting limits in intakes of dietary fats as percent of total energy intake (%E) as follows: 15-30%E for TF, 30%E, ≥10%E and >8%E, respectively. PUFA